1. Field of Endeavor
The present invention relates to electron beams and more particularly to a diagnostic system for profiling micro-beams.
2. State of Technology
U.S. Pat. No. 6,300,755 for enhanced modified faraday cup for determination of power density distribution of electron beams issued to John W. Elmer and Alan T. Teruya Oct. 9, 2001 provides the following state of technology information, “Electron beams are considered to be the most precise and clean method available for welding thick sections of materials. Unfortunately, electron beams suffer one critical deficiency, namely the repeatability of focusing the beam to a known power density. Without the ability to reliably reproduce the power distribution in an electron beam, weld quality cannot be guaranteed. This problem is exacerbated by the fact that many welds are made over a period of time and with different welding operators. Further complications arise when welds are developed on one machine than transferred to a different machine for production. An electron beam diagnostic method has been developed that enables the precise characterization of the power density distribution in high power electron beams. Such diagnostic method, which utilizes a modified Faraday cup, is exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 5,382,895, U.S. Pat. No. 5,468,966, U.S. Pat. No. 5,554,926 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,583,427. This electron beam diagnostic method has been utilized, for example, to certify changes in electron beam welders, and is further described in J. W. Elmer et al, “Tomographic Imaging of Non-Circular and Irregular Electron Beam Power Density Distributions,” Welding Journal 72 (ii), p. 493-s, 1993; A. T. Teruya et al, “A System for the Tomographic Determination of the Power Distribution in Electron Beams,” The Laser and Electron Beam in Welding, Cutting, and Surface Treatment State-of-the-Art 1991, Bakish Materials Corp., p. 125, 1991; and J. W. Elmer et al, “Beam Profile Analysis for the C&MS B231 Electron Beam Welding Machines,” LLNL UCRL-ID-127549, Jun. 12, 1997.”